The accused brothers were arrested in connection with the incident (Representational)
A 40-year-old man was allegedly beaten to death with an iron rod, in front of his pregnant wife, by two drunk brothers when he went up to them while searching for his son who had gone missing a few minutes ago, police said on Friday.
Krishan Kumar Meena, a truck driver, sustained severe head injuries and died during treatment at Safdarjung hospital, they said.
The accused brothers, Dheeraj Arora, 29, and Rakesh Arora, 31, were arrested in connection with the incident. Both are drivers of Gramin Sewa operating in Okhla Industrial Area, they added.
Later, the police also managed to trace the missing child from Pul Prahladpur area, police said.
According to police, the incident took place on Maa Anand Mai Marg on late Thursday night when Pappi Devi and her husband were searching for their 7-year-old son Rahul, who went missing just minutes ago.
When her husband approached two men standing nearby to enquire about his missing child, they got irritated and assaulted the victim with an iron rod. As Pappi Devi shouted for help, both the assailants ran away from there leaving behind her husband in pool of blood.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) R P Meena said, "When our team was patrolling on Maa Anand Mai Marg, they noticed a pregnant lady near Honda Showroom Chowk. She appeared nervous and was crying as her husband was lying on the road in an injured condition. By then public had also gathered there and our staff immediately rushed him to a nearby hospital for treatment."
During inquiry, Pappi Devi narrated the incident to the police and also described the two men who assaulted her husband, he said.
Based on her statement, a case was registered under section 302 (murder) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of Indian Penal Code at Okhla Industrial Area police station and efforts were made to arrest the accused, the DCP said.
During investigation, police received an important clue from a security guard who told them that he had seen a person wearing a brown coloured shirt, running away from the spot of the incident. The man occasionally used to sleep inside Gramin Sewa vehicles parked on the road, they said.
Following this, one of the accused, Rakesh, who was sleeping at the said place was arrested, he said.
On interrogation, Rakesh disclosed the involvement of his brother, Dheeraj, in the incident and he was also arrested from Pul Prahladpur area following raids, he added.
During interrogation, the accused disclosed that they were drunk and talking to each other when the incident took place. In the meantime, the victim came to them and asked about his missing son.
They said he was disturbing them by repeatedly asking about the same thing. This made them irritated and Dheeraj caught hold of the victim, while Rakesh brought an iron rod from the parked Gramin Sewa vehicle and hit him on his head. When the victim's wife shouted for help, they ran away from there, he said.
The blood-stained iron road used for committing the crime was recovered, police said.